Automated Handwashing Systems
The CDC has weighed in on automated handwashing systems: “Although technologically advanced automated handwashing devices and monitoring systems have been developed recently, only a minimal number of studies have been published that demonstrate that use of such devices results in enduring improvements in hand-hygiene adherence among HCWs. Further evaluation of automated handwashing facilities and monitoring systems is warranted.”22
Some believe automated systems can increase hand hygiene compliance because they make a tedious chore quicker and more fun, as well as thorough and more uniform than a manual “splash-and-dash” approach commonly used by harried HCWs. Resurgent Health and Medical’s Radius Automated Handwashing and Monitoring System is a fully automated, touchless system available in healthcare for mechanical handwashing, rinsing and sanitizing. It performs a 10-second cycle using a chlorhexidine gluconate-based sanitizing solution, delivered by high-pressure water jets that perform a consistent wash-and-sanitize cycle every time the machine is used.
“We’re committed to helping achieve ‘zero tolerance’ in the prevention of healthcare-acquired infections,” says Jim Glenn, CEO of Resurgent Health and Medical. “Our new Radius system brings to healthcare a proven technology that has enabled other critical industries to achieve near-perfect elimination of infectious workplace pathogens. Furthermore, the Radius system introduces a total prevention approach by automating measurement and documentation of handwashing compliance.”